


Tenth

by nobetterpicture



Series: SASO 2016 Fills [4]
Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: Future Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-02
Updated: 2016-06-02
Packaged: 2018-07-11 17:47:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7063129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nobetterpicture/pseuds/nobetterpicture
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for SASO 2016 Bonus Round 1 and the prompt "Remember when the Golden Pair got matching rings?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tenth

**Author's Note:**

> The title of this google doc was "Put a Ring On It" and I'm not even sorry.
> 
> Also, inspiration for this comes from ring-making cafes that I saw in South Korea and that I also believe exist in Japan. They're super cute for couples and the idea of them is very sweet and perfect for Golden Pair.

It happens on a sunny Saturday.

The cafe isn’t crowded and even if it was, they wouldn’t mind. The owner leads them over to the material selections with a warm smile, and Oishi’s glad that they did their research on these sort of places before they came. 

Eiji’s eyes are twinkling at the various metals behind the glass as the owner explains their different qualities and possibilities and prices. It’s so adorable and Oishi lets his arm slip around his waist as he leans his head against his shoulder. 

“They have gold.” Eiji says, pointing to the metal that had been their brand for over a decade. “But...it’s pretty expensive.” 

“We can afford it, if that’s what you want?” It does push their budget a bit, but this is their anniversary gift to each other and it _is_ a pretty important anniversary, so Oishi really wouldn’t mind splurging for this. 

Eiji shakes his head, ponytail tickling Oishi’s nose, and points to the silver instead. 

“Silver is fine. We can always get gold later.”

The owner leads them to their desk and takes both of their ring measurements. It’s exciting, honestly, and something that the both of them have been wanting to do for a while. 

When they get their pieces of silver, the owner asks if they want anything engraved and Eiji immediately blurts out-

“Partner.” 

There’s an adorable blush on his cheeks, like he spoke before thinking as he so often does, and Oishi knocks his knee with his own in a comforting _it’s okay_. The owner laughs and takes the pieces back to engrave them real fast. 

“Sorry,” Eiji mutters, scratching a nail against his jeans. 

“For what? Answering with what I was going to say before me?” And it’s true. It’s the only thing that Oishi would want engraved on it. Getting each other’s names is too cheesy, and also probably bad luck, but partner is-

“Do you remember the first time you called me ‘partner’, Eiji?” 

“No?”

“Neither do I.” Oishi reaches for his hand, carefully linking their pinkies together. “You’ve been my partner for so long, in so many ways, that I can’t really think of times when you aren’t around.”

Eiji blinks, a little surprised, but the owner comes back with their silver pieces and grabs their attention. He hands them heavy files and they actually get to work, scraping the edges to prepare the metal for sodding. 

“Did you want to me to bend the silver for you?” Is the question when the fileing is finished and Eiji politely declines, smirk crawling on his face. 

“Oishi here lifts a lot, like every day, so he can do it.” 

Oishi’s never been embarrassed about his muscles before, but as he uses pliers to shape the silver into a semi circular shape, he reminds himself to get Eiji back later. Their rings are then sodded together by the owner, and they chat over some coffee as the owner grabs the new tools they need.

The next step, as explained, is to beat the metal to the correct size of the ring and Oishi has to cut in.

“Is it okay if we make each other’s rings?” 

“That’s usually what most couples do,” The owner says, laying out the mallets and sizing cones, “So, of course.” 

Eiji’s a little too enthusiastic about the mallet and Oishi accidentally hits his thumb, but they finish that step faster than expected. There’s not much talking after, the loud buzzing of the electric files to smooth out all the imperfections on the rings taking over the cafe. 

When they get to polishing, the owner refreshes their coffee and Eiji suggests, lightly, that they have a race to see who can polish faster, and Oishi’s never one to back down.

They finish at the same time, which makes the owner shake his head, but soon enough they’re distracted by their new creations. The rings are simple silver bands, flat and shiny and fitting perfectly around their ring fingers when they trade rings. They’re exactly what the both of them wanted. 

Oishi links their pinkies again as Eiji pays for them, it _was_ his original idea to do this, and the owner tells them to come back anytime.

It’s only later, in the comfort of their apartment, that Oishi takes the moment to lace their hands and kiss the ring on Eiji’s. There’s a pleased laugh and that only reminds Oishi of before. 

“So, about me lifting every day…” 

“Well, you sure did lift me against the wall yesterday-” 

“Eiji!” 

“And then this morning when I made you breakfast..” 

“ _Eiji_!” 

“What!!” Eiji’s grinning, squeezing his hand, the smooth metal pressing against his skin, and Oishi can only sigh. 

They sit in a peaceful silence for a bit, leaning against each other as the sun sets outside. There’s dinner to be made, a bottle of champagne chilling in the fridge, but neither of them seem to want to move. 

“Happy 10th anniversary, Oishi Shuuichirou.” Eiji whispers into his shoulder. 

“Happy 10th anniversary, _partner_.” 


End file.
